The whole world was watching the UFC heavyweight title bout between Francis Ngannou and Stipe Miocic at UFC260.
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, Jon Jones, was one of those people watching the fight because it was very likely that he would become the challenger in the next heavyweight title fight. Ngannou won the fight by a 2nd round knockout taking the title from Miocic, who is seen by some fans as the greatest heavyweight of all time.
UFC President, Dana White, said in the post-fight press conference that Jones needs to “make the call”.
Jon Jones has been planning to move up to the heavyweight title division since he relinquished the Light Heavyweight belt in August 2020. A title fight is exactly what Jones wants and needs as his first fight at the heavyweight division. However, he wants to be paid what he’s worth before he steps into the box.
A dream matchup of Jones and Ngannou makes sense on paper and the window to schedule the match would be right now. The only issue is that the UFC has not met Jones’s demands on equal and fair pay, therefore, Jones’s relationship with UFC is at a stalemate. Jones went to Twitter to ask for his release from the UFC, citing that the organization is growing every year but the fighters are not seeing the dividends.
It is very unlikely that the UFC would release one of their biggest stars, but the issues with Jones and the UFC brass have occurred consistently for the last couple of years. A fight for the Heavyweight Title is the only fight that makes sense for Jones, with Ngannou seated as the perfect opponent to bring out the best in Jones’s fighting capability.
Not only is this a fan favorite matchup, but the timing to make this dream fight a reality would be for it to take place very soon. It would be a shame if this fight never came to fruition; not only for the fans but for the UFC as well.
